Bucks overcome travel saga with rout of Heat: ‘no excuses’

MILWAUKEE – Despite being based .

And despite the unusual travel day, the Bucks rallied from a 15-point first-quarter deficit to dominate the Miami Heat in a 125-96 victory, Milwaukee’s fifth straight win to cap one of the more difficult NBA road trips season.

“Just a weird, long couple of days,” Bucks coach Doc Rivers said Thursday night.

The Bucks arrived in New Orleans on Monday ahead of the blizzard, hoping to play Wednesday night. However, a foot of snow was dumped on the big one, closing several major roads with minimal snow-clearing equipment available.

That left the Bucks holed up in their hotel for three days while Tuesday’s practice and Wednesday morning shootaround were canceled before the NBA decided to postpone Wednesday’s game.

Players searched for ways to pass the time. At one point, Giannis Antetokounmpo found a ballroom where he could dribble a ball around. Damian Lillard said he started watching more Netflix shows between practices. Bobby Portis organized a card game in his room on Tuesday night.

“It felt like it was Covid again,” Portis said Thursday night with a laugh. “We were just in the room just chilled.”

Already facing the prospect of rescheduling a game against the Pelicans during a second half of the season filled with back-to-backs, the Bucks didn’t want to delay against the Heat and have to make up another game.

Players would play if they got back to Milwaukee on time, and with a one-hour delay in game start time, they were ready to do so. Rivers encouraged the players to recall their old high school travel basketball days from AAU, when teams would get off the bus and go play.

Both Lillard and Antetokounmpo delivered a clear message as the team prepared to board the bus to the airport in New Orleans: no excuses.

“As the leader of the team, you had to tell the team from rip, we don’t do that,” said Lillard, who had 29 points and 11 assists and finished one rebound shy of his first Bucks triple-double. “We don’t have excuses. I don’t care about the flight, I don’t care. We’ve been in a hotel. … there won’t be any excuses tonight, you’ve got to go out here and jump on them like we’ve done .

Still, the Heat jumped out to an early lead over the Bucks after what Antetokounmpo called a “sloppy” first 10 minutes by the team searching for a rhythm after not playing all week. But despite falling behind 20-5, the Bucks quickly bounced back, leading to a 71-55 halftime lead.

Antetokounmpo, who finished with a 25-point triple-double, said he was proud of the fight his team had, but also downplayed the so-called tough travel conditions with some perspective.

“The only difference is we had to take a flight,” Antetokounmpo said. “At the end of the day, if you could call this adversity, I think the team responded very well to this adversity that we had to take a flight for two hours before the game.”

However, the journey does not stop for Milwaukee. The Bucks are scheduled to fly again Friday morning for the start of a four-game West Coast Road Swing that begins Saturday in Los Angeles against the Clippers.

“How crazy is that?” Antetokounmpo said. “It’s crazy. Yeah. Go home, spend an hour or two with your family and then wake up, get ready, pack your bags and 9:30, be at the airport. Get ready for these four games in seven days . “